


Ocean Rose

by fallsintograce



Series: Special YOI Weeks/Events [4]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Based off Fan Art, Chihoko - Freeform, M/M, Manipulation, Marine biologist Victor, Merman Minami, Merman Phichit, Ocean diety Yuuri, Other, Sexy times coming later, Vicchan Lives, Vicchan is a tiny googly eyed octopus, Victuuri Week 2018, Viktuuri Week 2018, the ocean
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-03-13 03:46:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13562118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallsintograce/pseuds/fallsintograce
Summary: For the last few days, the oceans have been rough and no one has been able to explore them due to how dangerous the waters have become. For the past few days, Victor Nikiforov and his crew have been wondering what's been causing all this. They were left with no answers until the day he was given a rose from the ocean. So he goes down to find out where it came from and soon finds something even more spectacular; an ocean god.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, this is the last WIP for a while. I've got my BBOI I need to post and that's it. This time, Yuuri's not a mer-creature though! He's a god with a lot of anxiety! (Okay, that's almost like in the actual series, lol XD ) Anyway, I've based this off of zephryine gale's YOI nautical piece (or the WIP of it) and she gave me permission to do so. I pray I do her drawing some justice. In addition, this is also for Victuuri Week 2018 and fantasy au day.
> 
> A quick note that there will be some E rated stuff further down the line but not yet! We gotta ease into this first!

Mila ran down the halls of the lab, trying hard not to make a lot of noise as she went looking for one particular office. Normally, she would not have come here during her work hours but this was something big. As soon as she had gotten it, she asked her coworkers to cover for her for at least an hour. This was going to be her lunch break even if she didn’t eat anything.

Twice, she had been told by security guards not to run but she couldn’t help it. In her hands was something special. One person could help her figure it out. Her eyes scanned the various names outside of the doors until she found the one she wanted; Victor Nikiforov. His door was closed but she knew he was there. There was no way this young marine biologist was going to leave his office unless he was after something. As of late, he didn’t have anything going on.

To be safe, she knocked on the door and heard someone say, “It’s opened!” Pushing it open, she saw that Victor wasn’t alone. One of the interns, Yuri Plisetsky, rolled his eyes when he saw their visitor. “Oh, it’s just you. What do you want?”

Mila was used to this. “I just wanted to know if you were busy.”

Michele Crispino, one of Victor’s assistants, looked up and gave her a look. “We are in the middle of something if you don’t_”

“No, we aren’t!” Victor chirped up from his desk. His office was mostly clean save for all the papers on his desk. “Come in!” 

“Victor! I’m glad you’re here!” Mila greeted him. Over in the corner, Michele glowered but she ignored him. “Really though, are you all very busy? I need to talk to you.”

"We're just doing the same thing we've been doing for the last few weeks. The changes in the tides and the weather is unusual. I still don't know why it's so sudden. No one can explain it. I still don't know what's going on."

She knew what he was referring to. For the past few weeks, the ocean wasn't a safe place for anyone to visit. The waves crashed violently onto the shore and thunderstorms raged throughout the days. Some places had mentioned getting floods and it was difficult to drive through the streets. A few people suspected it might have been a hurricane or even a tropical storm headed their way. However, when they went to track storms, nothing was seen on the weather map. They were supposed to have clear skies and sunny days, not the horrible rainstorms. It put a lot of the current work at the lab to a halt. Even though this was not something Victor needed to do, he wanted to find this out anyway. That was just the kind of person he was.

“In that case, I better go.” Michele decided out loud. “I will drop these off and come back in an hour. Is that okay?”

“Go, go!” Victor waved him off, barely hearing anything that was said. He was more interested in Mila’s visit. Michele went off and she found a seat while looking down at what she had brought. Her fingers were covered with band-aids because she had to be careful with this. She kept it close to her and made sure that she didn’t drop it. Once Michele had left, she got up and went over to where Victor was. Both he and Yuuri were deep in paperwork but she needed to talk to them.

“I have something that might interest you. A customer came in with this and asked me how to care of it. They said they found it in the ocean and it doesn’t look like someone dropped it in there.” She unfolded the little package she had made and showed it to them. “I just hope can help me figure out what it is.”

“It’s a flower.” Yuri didn’t look impressed. “A blue flower.” 

“Not any kind of blue flower. It’s a rose.” Mila showed it to them. “I have never seen anything like it. Have you?” 

Victor looked at the blue rose, unable to give her an answer. He had seen plenty of plants in the ocean and he had seen his share of roses. This, however, was something unique. The rose had blue petals for one. The stem and thorns were a darker blue instead of green like most roses. 

“Where do you think they grow?” She went on. “It’s a rose but what kind of rose? They look nothing like what I have in the store. I asked Sara and others about it but they don’t know either. No one knows. That’s why I’m here. I was hoping you had an answer.” 

“What’s with the band-aids on your fingers?” Yuri asked. 

“What do you think? This is what I get for trying to take care of a rose I know nothing about.” She held up her hand. She had no idea what to make of this rose and had gotten pricked a few times when she was trying to prune it. It turned out that they couldn’t prune it or get rid of thorns. Those were like steel so she gave up trying to do anything to them. She also didn’t know know what kind of water to put the rose in. The smart choice was salt water since it had come from the ocean. 

Still, she had no idea how to take care of an ocean rose. There wasn’t anything on the Internet about them. The closest thing she found about ocean roses were from fictional stories and legends. There was no information on how to take care of them or where they were from. She hoped that someone here would have an answer.

“Have you seen anything like it before? I’ve looked for answers but I found nothing in the books. No one at the shop knows where it grows or anything about it.” She pointed out. "Does it look familiar?"

“It does. It’s a freaking rose.” Yuri replied, looking uninterested. Blue or not, it didn’t seem like anything special. “You came all this way to show us a rose?”

“Ah, Yuri. It’s not any rose.” Victor took it from her. “It’s one from the ocean.”

“Just cause it was found floating in the ocean doesn’t mean it’s from the ocean. Not everything in the ocean is from it. You know this better than anyone else!” Yuri sighed. 

“Maybe so but I need to find out why it’s in the ocean. This is different.” 

Victor stared it, gently touching the blue petals. It was first time anyone had seen these roses in the water. They looked exactly like the ones found on land with the exception that they were blue and had more thorns than normal. To pluck one out of the ocean floor was hard enough. No one had been successful at doing this without drawing a little blood. When Victor held the rose Mila gave him, he ended up dropping it because the thorns had pricked his fingers and palms. 

“Idiot.” Yuri grumbled when he saw this. “What made you think you weren’t going to get hurt? Everyone else has.”

“Yes, you should be careful!” Mila added. “Everyone has been getting hurt from touching it.” 

Victor ignored this and went down to pick up the rose. This time, he was more careful and made note of where all the thorns were. The stem was blue just like the petals were and it felt so cold. This ocean rose or whatever it was couldn’t be the only thing that existed down there. There were probably bushes of these roses blooming on that ocean floor. Somehow, they had to survive and he needed to figure out how. 

“Where did you find this?” He asked Mila.

She shrugged. “Someone brought it to my store earlier and asked me what it was. I know it’s a rose but I’ve never seen anything like it. They claim to have found it on the ocean floor.” Then she remembered something. “You know, ever since they found this rose, the storms started to roll in. No one was able to go to the beach. It was too dangerous for anyone to head out. I wonder…” She looked at the rose. “I wonder if the legend is true. It sounds crazy but it may make some sense.”

“The legend?” Suddenly, Yuri was interested. “What legend? Why didn’t you bring that up the first time around, hag?!” 

“Because it’s just a legend, Yura! That doesn’t mean it’s real. However, I’m not sure anymore.” She murmured. “People around here keep saying that an ocean god is causing all of this. If you steal something from him, he will cause storms until you return whatever you stole. No one will be allowed in the water unless they have a death wish.” She stared at the rose. “I wonder if this is what we have to do.”

“Pfft, that is the stupidest thing I’ve heard! Ocean gods! You really believe in that?” Yuri rolled his eyes.

“I didn’t say I believed in it. Still, you can’t help but wonder if…” She trailed off and looked at Victor. He was listening to everything she said and his mind was on the ocean. Mila had said the whole thing was a legend but what if there was something down there? If anything, there had to be more of those ocean roses. He needed to find out where it had come from. 

“Do you mind if I hold onto this?” He asked, holding up the rose. His fingers still ached from where thorns had pricked him. Despite this, he wanted to go down to the ocean floor and find out where it had come from. “I want to see if there are any more like this rose out there.”

“You can keep it. Just make sure you take care of it.” Mila told him. “I put it in salt water and I think that works since it came from the ocean. I’m not sure what else to do with it. But you are free to look after it. If I find anything else, I will let you know.”

“You’re pathetic, you know that?” Yuri grumbled when Mila left. “I bet that rose isn’t even real. It’s probably a fake that someone threw away. There’s nothing special about it.”

“No, it is special.” Victor kept looking at it. “Why would anyone throw this away?”

“So idiots like you can chase after it and think you found something big. In the end, it’s nothing. You’ve done this before a hundred times and you always end up disappointed. Yakov told you to stop chasing after things that aren’t real.”

It was true. Yakov hated seeing Victor come back disappointed anytime he didn’t find what he was looking for. He told Victor many times to stop chasing after legends and myths. There was no Loch Ness monster, no dragons or giant Kraken roaming about, no mermaids whatsoever. Those were harsh things to hear but it would ease the blows later on. Yuri had a point that the rose did look fake but it couldn’t be. At the very least, he needed to know who had thrown it in the ocean and why.

“I’m going.” He stood up, holding the rose. Fake or real, it had come from somewhere. “Watch everything for me. I’ll be back in a few hours.”

“Huh? Why?” Yuri demanded. “Where are you going?”

“To find something.” 

That was always his answer to anything. If he was leaving for a few hours, it was because he was going to find something. It didn’t matter what time of the day it was or if he had other things else to do. Now that Mila had brought over that rose, nothing else was going to matter. Yuri glowered at her as Victor ran off.

“Way to go, hag. Now he’s obsessed and I'm stuck he's doing all his paperwork.”

Mila shrugged. “He’d find out about these roses sooner or later.” 

An hour later, Victor was ready to find out where this rose had come from. He was going off on his own since the waters seemed calm today. For the first time in ages, it was safe to go underwater. He had heard stories of swimmers and divers who had gotten hurt by the violent waves. Even Victor and his crew had been kept from going down there. Now was a perfect time and he wanted to find out where all the roses were. He had a good idea of where he needed to be. According to Mila, the rose had been found floating close to the dock so it must have come somewhere in that area. He wasn’t going to go too far but he was curious about it. He didn’t want to believe Yurio or Yakov. He didn’t think he was a dreamer that was chasing something that didn’t exist. 

It was a long and hard search down there. Of course, all kinds of plant life and creatures were on the ocean floor but not this rose. Yuri was certain that it was fake but it didn’t feel that way. Those thorns were sharp and real. While he was careful holding it, he could still feel the thorns brushing against his palms. Still, there was nothing like it out there. Could Yuri have been right after all? Was he chasing after a fake flower? 

Victor swam around the ocean floor but was starting to grow tired. The search was becoming fruitless. There were plenty of plants but there was no ocean rose. The more he looked at it, the more fake it felt. He was grateful Mila had brought it over so he could at least check it out. He decided to back to the surface and let everyone know that he hadn’t found another ocean rose.

_Stop! Stop! Give that back!_

He didn’t believe what he had heard but turned around as the voice continued. 

_My rose! Did you take my rose?_

It was a young man with pale skin and wide dark eyes who looked scared. He wanted to move closer but something was holding him back. His face was focused on the rose and it looked he wanted to hold it. Each time he reached out, he pulled back. Realizing that this man or whatever it was wanted the rose, Victor handed it back to him. When he realized Victor wasn’t harmful, the young man reached out and took it back. He looked at it for a second to make sure it wasn’t damaged. 

_Were you the one who took my rose?_ He asked again, looking up. 

_Victor shook his head. You can hear my thoughts?_

_Yes. And if you didn’t take it, who did?_

He shrugged. Anyone in his place would have passed out from the sight of a young man in the water. Victor didn't do this because he didn't want to scare him away. Instead, he was curious. He knew this man was not a human being. It made everything inside of him feel heavy but he tried to remain calm. For the sake of the other man, he wanted to stay calm even if he was brimming over with excitement deep down. _I wish I knew. Someone found it floating in the water so I tried to find out where it came from._

The creature, whatever he was, looked closely at the rose and its thorns. Somehow, when he held it, that flower was glowing. It glowed with the beautiful young man and Victor stared in awe. He didn’t know how this person, if he was a person, was able to live down here. He turned away and started to head in the other direction. _Well, you found it. Thank you._

 _Who are you? How can you understand my thoughts?_ Victor had to ask. _Do you live here?_

That got him to stop and look at Victor for a second. This beauty was a lighter shade of blue compared to the ocean waters. Regal yet shy, he began to back away. _I’m afraid I can’t tell you any of those things. You wouldn’t understand. No human can understand._

_What do you mean? I promise I won’t tell anyone about you. I can keep a secret. I don't even know what you are!_

_No, it’s not that. It’s just...I shouldn’t even be talking to you! You’re a human! I…_ The young man looked down. _I should go. Thank you for bringing back my rose._

 _Don’t go! I need to...can you at least tell me your name? I won't hurt you! I swear. I’m Victor. You don't need to be scared of me! Here!_ He held out his hand for a shake but the young man just stared at it. It was obvious he didn’t know what to do so Victor pulled it back. 

He shook his head. _All I can ask is that you promise me you will never come down here again. For your sake, human, do not come back here. Forget you ever saw me._

_I can’t! Now that I found you, you have to tell me! What are these roses? What are you?!_

The beauty almost replied to that question but looked away. He definitely looked like he wanted to say something but he was being held back. _I’m sorry, Victor. I can’t tell you anything about me. I need you to forget that we ever met. Never come here again. For your sake, don't come back here again._

It was easy to say that but the young man didn’t believe those words. He sunk away into the darkness, taking his rose. He could tell that Victor was still watching him and wanting to ask more questions. Something told him that Victor was going to try and come back. 

_Please tell me your name before you go._

He didn't turn around but he did reply. _Yuuri. My name is Yuuri._

From that moment on, Yuuri was all Victor wanted to think about.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ah, I finally managed to squeeze this out! Thanks for all the love for the first chapter! This one is a little slow but that's because I'm getting ready for a trip. I won't have much computer time during those ten days so the next update probably won't happen till early March. I promise I will make it longer and more interesting than this!

“You ran into what?” 

The next morning was another horrible rainy morning to go in to work. The streets were flooding and the winds were at an all time high. People were being told to stay indoors yet no businesses had closed down. Both Victor and Yuri had braved this storm just to get in but Yuri was starting to regret this decision. He had the hardest time trying to understand what Victor was babbling about when he came in the next morning. He expected to hear that things were normal, the weather was bad, and all that he ran into was fish. He thought Victor would be disappointed. Instead, Victor looked lovesick. He was blushing furiously and humming as he wandered around his office. It was almost too sickening so Yuri had to ask. 

He didn’t expect the answer that he got. “He was beautiful, Yuri! He was the most stunning creature I have ever seen!”

“Who?”

“I…” Victor realized he had no idea what Yuuri, the gorgeous ocean creature, was. He wasn’t human nor was he a fish. “Um, I don’t know.”

“Oh, that’s helpful.” Yuri rolled his eyes. “You ran into something and you don’t know what it is?”

“I can’t explain it. He’s not exactly human but he’s not a fish either. It’s like he’s a god because of how he looks.”

“A god.” Yuri repeated, trying to wrap his mind around this. “You ran into a god.”

“I know it sounds crazy but it’s true. He lives in the ocean. He is the owner of the ocean roses. He’s beautiful and…” Victor trailed off, realizing he knew nothing else. “I have to find him again.”

“Seriously?! Are you telling me that your ‘ocean rose’ belongs to some guy in the ocean? No, it doesn’t belong to a person, it belongs to a god! Do I have this right?” 

“...Yes?” 

Of course, Yuri did not believe any of this. “You are sober, aren’t you?”

“Oh, Yuri! I know you won’t understand but I have to tell someone and you’re the only one here!” Victor sat down in his chair, wondering how he could see this beautiful creature named Yuuri again. This time, he wanted to be able to talk to him. Even though he warned to go back, he had to. There was so much he needed to know. Unfortunately, today was another one of those horrible days and it was raining hard. In fact, almost everyone was calling in late because of the horrible traffic and weather. No one wanted to risk their lives when the streets were flooding. 

“You can’t tell your dog about this?” Yuri asked.

“I did tell Makkachin but she can’t give me advice. I need a person to help me.” Victor sighed. Yuri probably couldn’t help that much but it was good to get this out to someone. Still, he needed an older person. He needed someone who had experience with love. “When does Chris come in? How about Georgi?”

“In three hours. He said the flooding is really bad around his house so he’s going to wait until to calms down. Georgi won’t get here till nine. I wouldn’t have come in either if my grandfather didn’t kick me out of bed and drop me off.” Yuri grumbled. Since he had been the only one around, he was the one who had to answer all the phones. They were all calling late because of the weather and Yuri was tried of playing receptionist. He was grateful Victor had shown up. Now he could deal with anyone coming in late. “Anyway, I’m going back to work. I didn’t finish anything from yesterday.”

He went off and Victor went back to daydreaming about Yuuri. It was strange. The weather had been terrible the past few days yet it stopped raining after he met Yuuri. As soon as Yuuri had his rose back, the bad weather went away. In the evening, everything had cleared up and the air was warm. For the first time in ages, people were outside without their umbrellas. Even the streets had dried. 

It couldn’t be. He thought. If he didn’t know better, it seemed like the weather was affected by Yuuri’s behavior. Maybe he had calmed down once he had his rose and the weather calmed down with him. He probably had the ability to control it. Still, why was Yuuri causing it to rain so much? Was he angry with the world? If so, why? 

Looking out the window, he could see that the rain was still coming down although it wasn’t as bad as this morning. He thought about Yuuri living down in that ocean and being unaware of the things that were on land. Yuuri looked so powerful yet meek at the same time. Maybe next time, he could ask what Yuuri truly was. There had to be a connection between him and the horrible weather as of late. And maybe, once he found he out, he could find a way to stop it too. Yuuri had told him not to return but he couldn't listen to that. He had to go back. He had to see him and ask him what was wrong. If it was something he could fix, then he would do it. 

_I know you told me to stay away, Yuuri, but I can't do that._ He started out the window as the rain poured down. Soon, he would go back to where he had seen the rose and he would try to find Yuuri. _I found you and I'm not letting you go until you answer some questions. And I have a lot of questions._

He just hoped that Yuuri would be willing to see him. He might have acted like this was the last time but it wasn't. This relationship wasn't over by a long shot.

It was just beginning.

~ ~ ~

Yuuri kept looking down at the rose he had and thinking about the human he had run into. He told the human never to come back but he was starting to regret it. Now that a new day was here, he was hoping he would see Victor again. Instead, all he saw were the usual merfolk and fish swimming about. He was friendly with them but his mind was on Victor. He felt his pet squid tugging at him, wanting to play. Vicchan was tiny compared to most of them and he had large eyes that could make him look silly. A few people teased him about keeping such a funny looking creature for a pet but he didn’t care. Vicchan was adorable and loyal. Those big eyes didn’t scare him. They just made him look unique. 

“Did I make a mistake, Vicchan?” He asked. “I really want to see him again. Then again, I've been told not to interact with any humans and I broke that rule. As long as no one knows about it, I'll be fine. At the same time, I don't want that to be the last time I see him. What do I do?”

Vicchan swam onto his lap just so he could get comfortable. He knew that his master was getting more and more anxious with the passing days. He was doing his best to calm him down but Yuuri still got nervous over the slightest thing. This wouldn’t be an issue if it didn’t affect the world above him and the oceans around him. This had been a problem ever since he was born. Whenever Yuuri cried or was fussy, he caused the waters to become violent. Then that affected the air outside of the ocean and in turn, it affected the humans on the land. Nowadays, most people didn’t come to visit the shore. It was too dangerous for them.

“Do you think there’s a way for me to see Victor, Vicchan?” He wanted to know. “I can’t really leave the ocean but maybe I could try and see what the land looks like. All I know is what Phichit has told me.”

Vicchan just gave him a big-eyed stare. Phichit was one of the few friends Yuuri had in this ocean and the only one who knew a lot about humans. He was a merman who interested in things outside of the water. He would go up to the shore just to watch people walking about and playing around. Lately, he hadn’t been able to do that because people didn’t come around. They were too scared to come down to the ocean while the waters were raging. Things on the shore weren’t as fun or exciting now. People were staying inside because of the heavy rains.

That was why he was surprised that Victor showed up yesterday. Most divers would have stayed away from such violent waters but not him. He was desperate to give that rose back. Somehow, Yuuri was certain Victor wouldn’t tell anyone about this encounter. If he did, no one would believe him. Yuuri lived too far deep and far away from most humans. He only left this area whenever he was called to check something. His rose being taken was a good reason to leave his spot and find it. Those roses were not meant to be found by humans. 

“Yuuri! There you are!” Phichit swam over to him, his gold and red tail swishing behind him. Normally, he came in with his arms filled with different things. He liked to go find human things at the bottom of the ocean or close to the shore. This time, all he had was a coffee cup that someone had thrown in. 

“How are things above?” Yuuri asked. 

“I’m afraid there are no humans on shore.” Phichit shook his head. “The sky is overcast. I don’t think they want to come out when it’s so awful outside.”

Yuuri’s face fell. “And that is my fault.”

“No, don’t think that! I know you’re just scared but we can work on that. Try to calm down, okay?” Phichit looked in the cup. “Ah, there’s nothing in here. The last time I found one of these, they had this strange brown liquid in it. I drank that and I couldn’t stop swimming for hours. It didn’t calm me down but it might have worked for you.” 

“I don’t know if I want to drink some strange human drink.” 

“Well, other than making me move around and unable to stay still, it wasn’t too bad.” Phichit shrugged. “This is an empty cup though. The human must have drunk it before throwing it away. Anyway, that’s all I could recover today. No one is getting close to the waters. No one wants to swim around here.”

 _Victor did._ Yuuri felt like replying. Yes, it was a foolish move to come down when the waves were violent. He could have waited until things were calm but he didn’t. He was the first human that Yuuri had gotten close enough to talk with down here. He expected Victor to panic or attempt to swim away but he just stayed there. Not only that, he managed to speak to him. 

“Phichit, did you see any humans swimming around yesterday?”

Phichit thought about this for a second. “Um, there were some humans swimming in shallow waters on the shore. I don’t think I saw any human divers though. There were a few boats when the skies went overcast, they left. I don’t think anyone would be stupid enough to dive down here while you’re controlling the ocean.”

Yuuri swallowed. So Phichit hadn’t seen Victor yesterday and that was good. While his friend normally left humans on the shore alone, he did love to scare the divers. To him, it was funny to watch them panic and try to make their way to the surface. He wasn’t trying to drown them. He just wanted to play around. It was fun for him but life-threatening for the divers. If Victor had run into Phichit, chances were high he would never come back to the ocean again. 

“You really didn’t see anyone today?”

“I’m sorry, Yuuri. Humans don’t want to come down here. Why? Is there a human you want to see?”

 _You have no idea._ Yuuri thought about telling Phichit about Victor held off. This was not the time to bring it up. Phichit was a good friend but he was horrible when it came to keeping secrets. If he learned that Yuuri had interacted with Victor, the rest of the ocean would know about it in minutes. Most merfolk didn’t like humans so this would be bad for both of them.

“I…” Yuuri looked down at the rose in his hand. Then he had an idea. “When is the next time you’re going to the shore?”

“I plan to go tonight if things calm down. Of course, it depends on a certain god of the ocean.” Phichit pointed out. “If you can stay calm long enough, I can take you to where I see most humans walking around. We have to keep our distance though.”

“What if we get caught?”

“We won’t. I know the perfect place to view them and they won’t know a thing. I know you’ve never really gone up to the surface before so just stick by my side. Don’t try to make a sound. We don’t want to draw any attention from them.” 

“Of course.” Yuuri agreed. “I wouldn’t dream of trying to attract humans and scaring them. If they found out I’m the reason they have storms…”

“Then you can take care of them.” Phichit finished off. “You control the weather, remember? No human can do that. If anyone did try to attack you, you can fight back. I’ll help you if you need it. We’re far stronger than the humans are.”

“I guess so. Still, I don’t want to fight the humans. Let’s just watch them and see what they are doing.”

“Is there any reason why you want to see them? You’ve never shown interest before.”

Yuuri winced. "I...um...I'm just bored. It's not easy being a god down here. I was hoping for a change of pace. That's it. Besides, all the things you've shown me from the human world are interesting. I want to see some of it for myself."

Phichit eyed him for a second but accepted this explanation. "Well, all right. I'll take you to see them tomorrow. Who knows? Maybe we'll get lucky and find another cup with that brown liquid again. This time, I'll let you try it. It might calm you down and the storms will stop."

"It might." Yuuri gave Vicchan a pat on his head and thought about tomorrow. It was entirely possible that he could see Victor on the land. He would be able to see Victor walk on his legs and act like a human. This time, he would probably be able to hear his voice out of his mouth. And maybe, just maybe, they could do more than talk. Yuuri just had to be confident and not scare Victor off. He had to keep his emotions to himself. He had to make sure he didn't make it rain because of his nerves. He had to be calm. He had to stay calm. He could do that.

For just a few hours, he could keep his nerves to himself. He was only going to watch humans out there. He would be in hiding. He would get to see what things on land were like.

There was no way anything could go wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone was wondering, Vicchan is this adorable googly-eyed squid here. [Googly-eyed squid vid](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEhYJEQmExE) (I know you want one as well!)
> 
> Just make a wild guess what's going to happen with Yuuri and 'the brown liquid' later on XD. 
> 
> I'm sorry for the shortness this time but I promise to make it up next chapter. Lemme know what you think and come say hi to me on tumblr! [fallsintograce](http://fallsintograce.tumblr.com)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phichit and Yuuri go to find Victor and Yuuri changes his mind...will it be for the better?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, I do apologize for how short and late this chapter is. I've been fighting a writing block these past few days. So while this one is a lot shorter than expected, I did manage to get out the part I wanted to do! Yay! We're mostly in Yuuri's POV here and will switch to Vic in the next chapter. Slowly, we'll meet more characters here. Bear with me if I've made grammatical errors. I think I caught them all so we should be fine!
> 
> Thank you to everyone who is following, kudos-ing, commenting, etc. I hope you will enjoy the story I have planned!

Phichit took Yuuri to the surface where he could get a look at all the humans walking by. There was a boardwalk not far from the ocean and it was always crowded. Tonight was no exception and people were too busy to care about anything happening in the water. This was good because Yuuri didn't want anyone to see him. He would never be able to explain himself, for one. For another, the air on land made him feel sick. He couldn’t stay out of water for very long. Every few seconds, he had to dip down because the air above was too much for him. He felt like he was suffocating so he went in the water to cool down. When he felt better, he’d pop his head back up and look over at where Phichit was. Phichit was making his mental notes and paying attention to what the humans were throwing away and talking about. 

“There are so many humans.” He noted, looking at all the people on the boardwalk. It was a lot more crowded than he had hoped and it was making him nervous. He tried to keep his emotions in check. The last thing he wanted to do was scare anyone. The wind was picking up and people were talking about it. A chill was in the air even though the sun had been in the sky earlier. He kept hoping that all he would cause was that chill.

“You will be fine. I’m right here.” Phichit told him. “So what does this human look like?”

“Beautiful.” Yuuri murmured, thinking about how kind Victor was and how he didn’t panic when seeing Yuuri. Their time together had been short but it was special. “He was very nice for a human. He didn’t try to attack me or do anything.” 

“That doesn’t help me much.”

“I’m sorry. He was probably the only human I’ve gotten a good look at and it still wasn’t enough. I do remember his eyes though. They were blue like the waves and his hair...it reminds me of moonlight. Other than that, all I know is that his name is Victor.”

“Well, let’s try calling out his name then.” Phichit suggested, looking at the crowd. “Maybe he’s around here.”

“Phichit, no!” Yuuri pleaded. “I...I don’t want him to find me especially after I told him to go away. He’ll realize I’m a liar!”

“If he’s as kind as you say he is, I don’t think he’s going to be angry. He'll understand if you changed your mind. If anything, I think he might be excited to see you. Anyway, there are a lot of people so I’ve enlisted Minami to help us find Victor out there.”

“Minami?” Yuuri’s smile faded. That little merman was the last one he wanted to join them. He was one of Yuuri’s helpers and always ran errands for him. “Um, he may not be the best choice. Don’t you remember what happened the last time he got close to humans? I’m amazed we were able to keep him from eating anyone.”

Phichit knew all too well what Yuuri was talking about. Minami was enthusiastic and willing to do anything Yuuri told him. However, Minami had a taste for all kinds of meat and wanted to know what a human tasted like. He and Phichit had once eaten a dead human that they found in the bottom of the ocean. No one knew how the human got there but it had been a feast for the merfolk. Now they wanted to eat a living human so Yuuri had to keep these mermen at bay. He could only hope and pray Phichit hadn’t tried to eat anyone while human watching the past few days.

“I still say we should call out Victor’s name. He could be here! He might respond!” Phichit suggested. Before Yuuri could stop him, he yelled out. “Hey, Victor! Victor, are you out there?!”

“Phichit, what are you doing?!” Yuuri hissed, pulling him away. “What if he heard you?! What are we going to do?”

Over on the boardwalk, several people stopped and looked around. The wind had picked up and they were trying to keep things together. Despite all this, bags and other debris went flying across the boardwalk. They had heard something but weren’t sure what it was. When they couldn’t find the source of the noise, they kept moving about like nothing had happened. Yuuri began to relax and the wind stopped. Victor was nowhere to be found. They had not been spotted and the humans were none the wiser. They probably thought it was some other human yelling. 

“I guess he’s not here.” He decided. It made sense. There were a lot of people but that didn’t mean Victor would be around. “He must be busy with something else.”

“That’s too bad.” Phichit sighed. “I thought for sure one of them would be who you were looking for.”

Yuuri had fel the same way and was disappointed to see that Victor wasn’t in this crowd. Maybe he had taken Yuuri’s words to heart and decided not to come. Or it could have been as Phichit said and he was busy with something else. He probably couldn’t come down here with all the other humans. This had turned out to be a waste of time. 

“I guess we should go. I don’t know if I can keep searching for him out here.” Yuuri murmured. Below, he could feel Vicchan swimming around him. The poor thing had to stay underwater and had no idea why his master kept poking his head out to see humans. Well, he technically did understand that Yuuri was interested in a human. He just couldn't do anything about it from here. 

“Yuuri! Yuuri, your excellency! I have news!” Minami swam over to them. He was brimming over with excitement and couldn't stop splashing the water with his bright yellow and red tail. “I think I may have found what you are looking for!”

“You have?” Yuuri was surprised. 

“Come with me!” Minami motioned them to follow him and that made Yuuri even more nervous. He hadn’t told Minami what Victor looked like so he didn’t know what to expect. As he became more anxious, the wind began to pick up and people began to run inside to avoid it. It was no longer a chill but a lot of wind tossing things around. 

“Yuuri, stop! You’re scaring the humans!” Phichit pointed out. “If this continues, you’ll never find him!” 

“I can’t help it! Is Victor out there?! I have to know!”

He didn’t get a reply except for people running around and then someone yelling “FUCK!” over the crowd. That made him shudder and the winds picked up sand from the crowd. People were now crying out loud as they tried to run for safety. Yuuri did his best to calm down but he couldn’t help it. He wanted to find Victor and get a better look at him on land.

“Vitya, get inside! This isn’t safe! Yuri! Forget about that and get inside!”

He perked up at that. Could Vitya possibly be a nickname for Victor? It sounded like it could be but he didn’t want to keep his hopes up. He turned in the direction where the shouting had come from and was disappointed that it was an old man that was yelling. He wasn’t as good looking as Victor had been. Also in the group was a young boy, probably a teenager, who was complaining about something. Apparently, he had gotten three scoops of ice cream but the wind had knocked over two of them. He was demanding a refund at this moment.

“I paid with my own money!” He was arguing. “Fucking wind!” Then he looked up and turned to the corner. “It’s not funny, Victor! I asked for three scoops and I expect three scoops!” 

Yuuri looked in that direction again and heard the laughter. It was very familiar so he wondered if this was the same person. The smaller human moved away for a second and that was when he saw him. There was Victor, laughing and looking even more beautiful on land. His hair was like silver and silky enough to run his fingers through. However, the best part about Victor was his smile and laughter. He had a very sweet smile that was almost heart-shaped and his laugh was like music. Seeing his face light up like that was enough for Yuuri to start smiling. In doing so, he felt more relaxed. He was a few feet away from Victor but he could see him. Around him, the wind died down.

“Dammit, I’m going to get a refund!” The younger man grumbled. “Stupid weather.”

“The sun’s back out!” A redhead woman who was with them pointed out. “This is strange, isn’t it? One minute it was windy and now it’s back to normal. What do you think is causing this?”

Victor looked up at the sky and was surprised that the clouds were white and fluffy again. Yuuri felt sick inside because he knew what Victor was thinking. He didn’t need to read his mind because he could see it all in Victor’s face. He was wondering how Yuuri could change the weather like this. He wanted so many answers and Yuuri had those answers. At the same time, he was scared. He had been told never to go back. 

“I can see why you think he’s beautiful.” Phichit murmured. "His hair is the color of the stars." 

Minami took a look at Victor and shrugged. “He’s all right. We can eat him last.”

Yuuri paled. Merfolk did like to eat people if they had the chance but they couldn’t take this one. He didn’t know what would happen if any of them got to Victor first. “No, you can’t eat any of these humans! They’ve done nothing wrong!”

“Yuuri, calm down! We won’t do anything to him!” Phichit insisted. It was too late thought. Yuuri’s nerves were shaking and the clouds began to go dark. “No, Yuuri! Please don’t...we don’t want to scare them!” 

It was too late. Once again, the wind picked up and the humans began to run into buildings. The small, blond human complained again as he was led away. Someone starting yelling that they were gettng sand in their eyes. Victor also went inside and Yuuri could no longer see him. Feeling down that he couldn’t speak to him, he sunk back into the water. He had seen enough and he couldn’t do much from where he was. He was too scared to call out Victor’s name. This was all a bad idea.

At his heels, Vicchan poked him. His pet was the only one who could calm him down at this moment. He knew when his master was having one of his moments and his anxiety was flaring up. Back in the water, he felt better. He felt as ease when Vicchan swam around him. The waters went still but he couldn’t go back up there. 

“What am I going to do, Vicchan?” He asked. “There is so much I want to say but I’m too scared. I’m afraid of looking at him on land. Whenever I do...well, I cause trouble.” He sighed. “I guess it’s for the best. I belong here. He belongs there. It would be hard for us to be...well, anything.”

“Yuuri! Yuuri, are you all right?” It was Phichit coming to see how he was doing. He saw that Yuuri had calmed down with Vicchan in his arms. “Oh, the winds have stopped up there if you want to go_”

Yuuri shook his head. “I don’t want to cause anything up there. I wasn’t trying to.”

“I know. There were a lot of humans out there and we finally got a chance to see the one that interests you. Unfortunately, he didn’t come back out after you left. Maybe we can try another time.”

“It’s all right. Maybe it’s not meant to be.” He shrugged. “Still, I do hope I get to see him down here again.”

“I thought you didn’t want to see him?”

“I...I don’t know what I want. A part of me says I shouldn’t and the other part of me can’t stop thinking about him. I don’t see how we can stay together or even have a friendship.” Yuuri murmured. Vicchan wiggled around in his arm and he gave him a squeeze. “I know, Vicchan. He does look very kind and he wasn’t scared when he saw me.”

“Do you want me to lure him over to the ocean?”

“No, don’t do that! I...I should try to talk to him. I don’t know how but I need to.” He decided. Then he came up with an idea. “Phichit, can you help me with something?”

Phichit’s face lit up at that request. “I can! What do you want?”

“If you see Victor, I want you to bring him to me. Don’t frighten him or try to hurt him. Just tell him that Yuuri wants to see him. Tell him to forget about what I said earlier. Tell him that I changed my mind and I want to get to know him.”

“Um, all right. If I see him down here, I will try to bring him to you. I’m not sure if he’ll follow me or not though.”

“He will.” Yuuri assured him. “Just say my name and he will follow you. All I ask is that you don’t tell any of the other merfolk about this. Keep this between us. Don’t even tell Minami about him. I saw the way he was looking. If I didn’t cause that storm, he probably would have tried to eat someone.”

“I doubt it. Minami will do anything to please you. If you say no, he won’t touch a hair on anyone’s head.” Phichit said. “But I will keep this from him. I will keep my mouth closed unless I see Victor. When I do find him in the water, I’ll bring him to you. Do I have it all right?”

Yuuri nodded. “That’s perfect. Anyway, I don’t think he’ll be coming down here tonight but keep a lookout for him in the morning.” 

“I will. And I really hope whatever you want with him...I hope it works out for you.”

Once Phichit had swam away, Yuuri looked down at Vicchan. He knew the little octopus would not tell anyone what happened. Vicchan was loyal and he could sense how important this was. Worse case scenario, Yuuri would have to send Vicchan to find Victor. 

Vicchan. Victor. It was funny because Vicchan’s name was actually Victor. Yuuri didn’t know why he had chosen that name but it seemed to fit. He looked like a Victor and the rest of the merfolk agreed that it was a perfect name. Now there was another Victor, a human Victor, who was just as beautiful as all the creatures in the sea. He knew it was a bad idea but he wanted to get closer. He wanted to look into his eyes and tell him he was sorry. He never meant to chase him away but he was afraid. 

“I’m crazy, Vicchan. I have to be.” He spoke out loud. “I know this is wrong and we have no future with each other. I can’t drag him down here and I can’t be up there for him. What am I doing?”

Vicchan didn’t have an answer but he was around for cuddles. That was what Yuuri did that moment. He cuddled the octopus and thought about what would happen next. Things were starting to look up now that he had a plan of some sort. He was going to work on his nerves and he wouldn't scare anyone off. Victor would come back down here. He was sure of that much. He had hope that they would see each other soon. 

Where they would go from there remained to be seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lemme know what you think! And come visit me at Tumblr: fallsintograce.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next step takes place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, this fic is being updated! This is the last bit of dragging and then we'll get to see them be cute in the next chapter! In case you were wondering, I was working on this and the mer-sting ray fic at the same time which is why they are both updating around the same time ^^;.

The winds were dying now but no one really wanted to go outside. The strange weather patterns had everyone wary about doing anything and it had gotten dark now. The only place anyone wanted to be was safe at home. The shops were going to close in an hour but Victor had no desire to leave. He kept looking out at the ocean, knowing that a certain ocean deity was lurking deep in those waters. It was strange to think that he was intrigued by something that was a part of this ocean. No, Yuuri was the ocean. Yuuri had control over so much and he probably wasn’t even aware of what his actions were doing. 

“Are you going to mope here forever?” Yuri asked, tired and ready to call it a night. Victor had not stopped staring at the ocean ever since he got inside. “That ocean will be there tomorrow, you know. What’s so great about it anyway?”

That was the wrong thing to ask because Victor was going to name off a million things that he loved about the ocean. He loved the colorful fish and sea creatures that lived down there. He loved all the plants and the rocks that were on the bottom. He loved the possibilities of finding new things down there. The ocean was vast, deep, and lovely. 

However, Victor only said one thing about it. “Yuuri.”

“What?”

He soon realized his mistake. “Oh, I was thinking of another...person with the same name.”

“There’s another Yuri?”

“Yes and he’s so beautiful!” Victor sighed, thinking of Yuuri’s soft features. He blended in so well with the waves and he looked like he had been painted in these waters. “I can’t stop thinking about him. I just met him but I want to know more about him. He’s too shy though. I think he’s afraid of me.”

“He sounds kind of boring to me.” Yuri rolled his eyes as he got up from his chair. “Come on. I promise that if this other Yuri likes you, he’ll be back tomorrow. You can see him then.”

Victor got up but he stared at the waters. Yuuri was still down there. Yuuri could never leave those waters just like Victor couldn’t be with a god of the ocean. How could they ever make any kind of relationship work? He wanted badly to touch Yuuri’s face and see how it felt. He had a million questions about his powers. The only way he was going to see Yuuri was going back down there and trying to find him. Even if he had to search the entire ocean for him, he would do that. 

Yuri wasn’t the only one to notice how spacey Victor seemed. Georgi Popovich, who had been sitting with them, knew what that look was. He had seen it on other people many times. “Ah, he has fallen in love. How wonderful yet tragic for him.”

“Why is it tragic?” Mila asked. “Not everyone out there was like Anya, you know.” 

“I know.” Georgi winced when he heard his ex-girlfriend’s name. He had been trying hard to forget Anya’s existence now. “Victor is in love with someone that he can’t be with. This Yuuri, whoever he is, has kept his distance for his own reasons. He is afraid to make the first move. He is waiting for Victor to do it. Even still, he’s unsure about his feelings. He doesn’t know if this will be worth it.”

“And how do you know that? Victor hasn’t told us much.”

“I can see into his soul.” Georgi nodded. “I can see that he is conflicted. He doesn’t know what he wants to do now. He’s desperate to get to know this new lover but he is also afraid. He fears rejection. He doesn’t want this lover to say no and is trying to find ways to impress him.” 

Victor didn’t confirm or deny this but he was listening. Georgi almost had all of this pegged down. Yuuri was indeed hard to reach and he was afraid. He would not be able to make the first move so that would have to be up to Victor. Georgi was also right about the fact that Victor was afraid of rejection. Yuuri had said no once but he could tell that he didn’t mean it. Deep down, Yuuri wanted to see Victor too. He just didn’t know how to bring him back to the ocean. 

“Is he right?” Mila asked Victor. “Are you both afraid to approach each other?”

Victor nodded. “It’s more complicated than you think. I want to talk to him but I don’t know where to start.” 

“You could call him up and ask him to go out with you tomorrow.” She winked at him.

If only it was that easy. Victor wished there was another way of contacting Yuuri down there. He really wanted to tell someone about the fact that he was falling in love with someone unique. Yuuri was no person. He was a god, the ocean, bigger and more powerful than anything he had imagined. If Yuuri could control his emotions and nerves, he could be truly dangerous. He would have the ability to destroy anything in his past.

“You must make the first move!” Georgi insisted. “You will get nowhere by pining like this! Tell them how you feel. Open your heart to them and let them see everything inside! Pour it out! Lay it in front of him! Bleed everything_”

“For fuck’s sake, he gets it already!” Yuri snapped. “Victor has to tell this other guy how he feels. That’s all you needed to say!” 

Georgi was about to complain but he stopped himself. He was far more concerned about Victor’s dreamy look than Yuri’s annoyance. “Don’t keep this matter inside of you. When you get the chance, tell him what’s on your mind and in your heart.”

“I will try.” Victor promised. “If I see him tomorrow, I will try to tell him everything.” 

He took one more look at the ocean and wondered in which corner Yuuri was resting. Did he even rest in the first place? Was he thinking about Victor the same way that Victor was thinking about him? He didn’t want to think that Yuuri had completely forgotten about him now. Then again, Yuuri had probably seen a million people in the ocean. He already knew what they were like. Victor needed to stand out and be more memorable. He couldn’t follow through with what Yuuri had said. 

_Don’t keep this matter inside of you._

Georgi had a point and it was settled. Tomorrow, he was going back down there and finding Yuuri. 

~ ~ ~

In the morning, Yuuri felt more calm and made sure the waters were calm as well. He knew that he had panicked last time and caused most humans to go inside because of the winds. He had never meant to disrupt anything going on but it had made things worse. One of these days, he needed to control his emotions. Everyone had said that if he wasn’t careful, he could drown the whole world. His parents had told him that he had that much power. He could destroy anyone and anything in his path.

These days, it seemed like his nerves had gotten the best of him. It was because of the roses at the bottom of the ocean. He feared people taken them away because they wouldn’t know how to take care of an ocean rose. When some of those roses went missing, he panicked and that caused many monsoons around the world. In some cases, homes were destroyed and people did not survive. Knowing that he was behind all that made things worse. Before that human came into his world, things were falling apart.

“Do you think he’s forgotten about me, Vicchan?” Yuuri asked, playing with his pet. “He must have a lot of friends on land. It would be better if he spent time with them, right? They’re made of flesh and blood just like he is. He’ll have a better time with them than he’d ever have with me.”

Vicchan tried to comfort him but it wasn’t enough. When he had been younger, Yuuri had asked his older sister, who lived in another corner of the ocean, what humans were like. He had seen plenty of them and wondered if any deity had gotten close to them. Mari admitted that she had gotten close to seeing humans before. She had seen them alive as well as dead. It was different when the life had been snuffed out of them. Their eyes were empty and their skin was completely pale. They bobbed around in the water for some time like garbage. It was a horrible sight and she told Yuuri that she hoped he never saw this. 

“Humans aren’t as strong as they look sometimes.” She reminded him. “They love the ocean though they can be careless. They throw their junk into the water and they don’t think about creatures that live down here. They don’t realize the harm they can cause. However, we are far stronger than they are. If they do try to anything to you, you can always fight them back. You can always drown a human.”

“But I don’t want to do that.” Yuuri pointed out. Then he changed the subject. “Do you think it’s possible that we could be friends with humans?” 

“Friends?” Mari laughed at that. “Oh Yuuri, that’s sweet of you. I know there are nice humans out there but we could never be friends with them. A human and the ocean? It just doesn’t make sense. Humans are mortal. It wouldn’t work out, no matter how hard you tried.”

She was right but Yuuri still wanted to try. He never felt that way until recently. Chasing after a human would be hard for him so all he could do was wait.

“He’ll be back, won’t he?” He asked Vicchan. “I know he has questions. He wants to know so much about me and I want the same. I just hope he’ll be able to handle all of this. I also hope he’s not angry at me for what I said. I didn’t mean it even if it is for his own good.”

“Your Excellency! My Liege! I have news for you!”

Yuuri looked up to find Minami swimming towards him, looking excited and anxious at the same time. Whatever this news was, it was big and he couldn’t contain himself. “Your Highness, Most Gracious God of the Seas, you must know about this!”

“Oh, Minami.” Yuuri couldn’t help but smile at this. “How many times have I told you? You don’t need to call me ‘your highness’ or ‘excellency’ or anything of that sort? Just calling me Yuuri is good enough.”

“I’m sorry, Benevolent Ruler of the Oceans!” Minami apologized, causing Yuuri to laugh at this. “You must know of what is going on around the world. Over by the Indian Ocean, several sailors are lost at sea. Humans are trying to search for them but the search is fruitless. There are also reports of monsoons as well as some hurricanes.”

“And that would be my fault.” Yuuri sighed. “Is there anything else that’s happening nearby?”

“Not much but there’s supposedly a human roaming about in your rose garden again. He didn’t do anything to it. He’s just waiting there.”

“Waiting?” Yuuri couldn’t believe what he had heard. “Are you sure about that? There’s a human waiting in my rose garden. What does he look like?”

“I didn’t see him, Your Highness. I only heard this from other merfolk who have been keeping an eye on it. They didn’t do anything to him because they want you to see for yourself. They want you to decide what to do about it.”

Yuuri was suddenly very excited and nervous at the same time. Around him, the waters were starting to rise and shift. “I guess I will go and see this for myself. Thank you for telling me.”

“Anytime, Your Excellency! I only wish to please you!” Minami bobbed his head. 

“And what did I say about calling me that? I prefer to be called Yuuri at all times.”

“I’m sorry, Your High...Yuuri.” Minami corrected himself. “Should I do anything else?”

“Keep an eye on news about the monsoon and missing humans. I will go see this human for myself.” Yuuri decided. “That will be all for now. Thank you.”

“As always, My Liege...I mean, Yuuri.” Minami promised. “I swear I will get used to that soon! I’ll do it only for you!” 

With that, Minami swam off to find out more news from around the ocean waters. As for Yuuri, he wanted to believe that this was true. Many of the merfolk had confirmed the human’s name for him. They had seen him around before though they never approached him. Over and over again, he kept saying that name in his mind. 

_Victor._

Victor, his Victor, had come back to him. Just saying his name put him at ease but it also thrilled him. The waves around him got a little rough but only because he was feeling hopeful. He went as quickly as he could to that rose garden with Vicchan at his side.

“Can it be him?” He asked. “It has to be him, right?”

Vicchan moved faster than he did and made his way down to the rose garden. It was large and hidden deep in the ocean where most sea creatures wouldn’t venture, let alone humans. It wasn’t a place for humans to be and he always hoped they wouldn’t find it. However, he had no problem with Victor waiting for him down there.

 _Victor._ Yuuri liked that name and the way he sounded in his ears. It seemed to fit perfectly. It was the name of someone who always won and came out on top. _Please tell me that it’s you down there. Please tell me that you decided to come down again after all._

By now, Vicchan had already gone down there and was swimming between all the roses. The garden was in full bloom and as immaculate as it should be. However, there was no human down there. The garden was empty save for the fish swimming around it. Yuuri was puzzled and wondered if Minami had gotten the right information. Minami had no reason to lie about this but maybe he had meant the human was somewhere else. There were other plants around and other merfolk had their own gardens. That had to be it.

 _Minami was probably too excited and just didn’t know which garden it was._ Yuuri realized, feeling a little disappointed. The water around him was starting to calm down but it didn’t change his mood. He was hoping to see Victor down here. Then he could explain so much more. He could explain what his powers were, what his family was like, and how hard it was for him to leave the ocean. He was a part of it after all. Despite this, he did want to be friends. Victor seemed nice enough. He could still picture that smile and laughter. 

_Maybe it’s not meant to be. I shouldn’t pine over someone I can’t have or be with. Victor is a person who needs to be with another person. How can he be with a god?_

Feeling blue, he went over to his roses and looked at them. They were all down there, bright and red, waiting for someone to pluck one out. If Victor was here, this time he would let him have one of them. He could afford to lose one of them. He was far more concerned about other things. He needed to stop causing problems all around the world. The other seas were a danger to humans and it was because of his emotions.

 _I have to stay calm. I have to be calm._ He told himself. _If Victor was here, then maybe I can tell him how I feel._

_What do you want to tell me?_

Yuuri felt ill at that moment but in a good way. He knew who that was but he still turned around. He was shaking out of excitement as he plucked one of the roses to hand over to Victor. It was high time they got to know each other a little better. 

_This one is for you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on tumblr @ fallsintograce. I've got far too much YOI, Pokemon, and sea creatures on it XD.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which more is revealed...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have returned! After stewing around with this, I finally have the next chapter to this. Things are starting to speed up. 
> 
> First off, we have some fan art from litorella! Thank you! [Go check it out!](https://littorella.tumblr.com/post/173989196192/a-rose-by-any-other-name-would-smell-as-sweet)
> 
> Secondly, I haven't forgotten my other fics. I'm just trying to balance all of them at once. One is nearing completion so once that's done, I'll have more time for all the mers! Un-betaed for now but I'll fix errors as I go. Thank you for following along.

By now, everyone realized that Victor was not the same person they were used to. This morning was a bright and sunny day, perfect to go out and do things. A day like this rarely came around now. However, he was in the flower shop, picking away at petals and humming to himself. All he could think about was that beautiful ocean diety that was down there and how he wanted to get closer to him. 

Mila watched him and wondered if she could interrupt. He looked so lost and in love that she didn’t dare break his concentration. “What do you think happened to him?”

“Feh, who cares? He’s been like this for a long time.” Yuri muttered. “He’s always humming to himself. I asked him what made him so cheerful and he said the ocean. That’s not much of an answer cause he’s always liked the ocean.”

“Ah, it must be something in the ocean that he saw.”

“No shit it’s something in the ocean! He keeps talking about some gorgeous creature and blue roses. I didn’t even bother to ask what that meant. I don’t think he even knows what he’s in love with.”

“Well, I think it’s nice. He’s been alone for a long time.” Mila pointed out. “If he found someone, that’s a good thing. He needs someone that he can talk to and spend time with.”

“Why? He’s got us.”

“It’s not the same.” Georgi spoke up, looking at Victor who was making a flower crown now. “Can’t any of you see it? He is in love. Being in love is different. I know. I’ve been in that situation before. He doesn’t want to think about anyone else but the one he is in love with.”

Yuri rolled his eyes. “Well, can he be in love somewhere else? This is really freaking me out.”

Mila and Georgi didn’t seem to be worried about this. Victor was in a much better mood than he had been in earlier. He was smiling and walking around like he had no cares left in this world. They couldn’t remember the last time he was able to sit here and just rest for a little bit. Whoever this person was, they were having a good influence on him. Even his dog seemed to notice that her master was in a better mood. Makkachin sat at his feet and nuzzled against him while he scratched her behind her ears. He had promised to take her out for a walk along the beach once he was done here. 

“So Victor, did you find where those roses came from?” Mila tried to get his attention.

“Hmm?” Victor didn’t look up. He was now playing with Makkachin on the ground and giving her bellyrubs. Makkachin licked his hand and let out some happy barks. “I think so.”

“What do you mean you think so? You seemed confident last time.” 

“Huh?” Victor finally looked up to find that he wasn’t alone. “Oh, Mila! When did you get here?”

“I’ve been here all morning. Everyone has been here ever since you came in. Don’t you remember asking me for some flowers?” She was concerned now. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“I’m fine. Just fine.” He laughed when Makkachin pressed her wet nose against his palm. “Ah, Makkachin, I know! He’s just so beautiful!”

“He?” Georgi’s interests were piqued now. “Ah, so you have found someone! I knew it! I knew you were in love! Who is he?”

“The ocean.”

“Oh, come on!” Yuri’s annoyance was loud enough to break Victor out of his daze. He went from being happy to confused. “You keep talking about the damn ocean all the time! Anytime anyone asks you anything, you keep saying you’re in love with ocean! You can’t be in love with the ocean! It’s not a real person!”

Victor started to open his mouth but stopped. He knew what he had seen but no one else did. How would they believe him? How would they believe that he was falling in love with someone who was part of the ocean? Even more bizarre, this ocean diety was causing all the weather issues. “Ah, you wouldn’t understand, Yuri. You’re too young.”

“Please! I know what being in love is like. I’ve been around Georgi long enough to see how it turns people weird and brainless.” 

“Ah, that’s not what it does.” Georgi explained. “I say we should give him some space. Victor knows what he’s doing. He’s happy and in love and that’s all that should matter. One day, we’ll meet this mysterious man.”

The door of the flower shop opened as Yakov came in. Mila stood up straight to see her former coach and boss. When all of them had been younger, they were into figure skating. All of them were good at it but moving to the beach changed a lot of things. Victor stopped skating and the others just didn’t feel like continuing in competition. Only Yuri still wanted to get back into it even though he was struggling to make it now. Nonetheless, they felt like students at this moment. Yakov was like a father to all of them and, while they weren’t staying with him anymore, they still made sure to behave when he came around. Right now, they all went quiet including Makkachin. She rolled back onto her stomach and stood up while her master sat down next to her. It was no shock that Victor was the only one who didn’t seem worried that Yakov was here. He just stood up, took the flower, and placed it on Yakov’s head.

“Good morning, Yakov! How are you?” He greeted him.

Yakov eyed him as Victor walked away with Makkachin at his heels. “Something has happened to him. Is he sick?”

“He’s in love.” Georgi sighed. “He doesn’t feel anything but love right now. Isn’t it wonderful?”

“In love?” Yakov softened up at that. “Well, that’s not the worst thing out there. Who is this lucky person?”

“We don’t know yet. All we know is that this person has something to do with the ocean.”

“Ah, he must have found someone who shares his interests. It’s about time.” Yakov sighed. He had known Victor from a young age and he knew how lonely the poor boy was. Despite that cheerful appearance on the outside, he was aching to have a close friend. Victor had friends in general but no one he could truly share his deepest thoughts with. He needed someone.

“He’s acting weird. I don’t like it.” Yuri murmured. “Do you think that he’s…”

Yakov shook his head. “No, it’s been years now. They’ve told us never to force him to remember what happened.”

Everyone went quiet then. They were all hiding this secret from Victor because they were waiting for his memory to come back. It had been years since the accident but Victor seemed to be the same person they knew and loved. That incident should have kept him from the ocean but he only seemed to be drawn more to it. It was like he couldn’t remember what happened to him a long time ago.

“We can’t let him live like this forever.” Mila pointed out. “What if it happens again? This time, we may not be able to save him.”

“We cannot rush this. You know what the doctors said.” Yakov reminded her. “The memory might be too painful for him. He will learn in time.” 

“What if he doesn’t?” Georgi asked. “Are we going to let him live like this?”

It wasn’t what anyone wanted but Yakov nodded. “I think it might be for the best. For now, say nothing to him. We don’t want to scare him.”

The others agreed to this but weren’t sure if it was the best decision. If Victor found out the truth on his own, he probably wouldn’t be all right. Everything lay in the ocean. If he looked hard enough, he would remember what happened. 

He would remember the moment that nearly changed his life forever. 

~ ~ ~

Yuuri was doing his best to find out more information about his human. He sent merfolk and sea creatures to bring back whatever they could. Most of them had the same information; the human’s name was Victor and he lived close to the ocean. They had seen him on multiple occasions but he was no threat. He was well-known among the humans and was seen a very positive person. He was also working hard to protect the ocean and everything that lived in it. All in all, he was a good human, one of the few out there.

After mulling over it for a while, Yuuri decided he wanted to get Victor a little gift. It was his way of thanking him for bringing back the roses. It wasn’t much, just a tiny shell on a string with a little special power to it. Victor would find out what that power was as soon as he put it around his neck. It would be a little bit of a surprise but he would get used to it. It would be very helpful the next time he made his way to the ocean. 

_He might be startled at first but I think he’ll enjoy this gift. It’s simple yet nice enough. I think it will work._ Yuuri decided, putting it into a tiny box. Thanks to Phichit, there were a ton of human things lying around.

Phichit was the one who came with the best information. Not only did he know about Victor, he had a picture of him torn from one of those human papers. This piece of paper was stuck inside of a metal frame and glass so the picture was never ruined. This photo was of Victor in the ocean, petting a shark and surrounded by all kinds of fish. His hair was longer and he looked so much younger in the photo. This had been taken early in his life and he seemed like he belonged in the ocean.

“He looks so much like a merman.” Yuuri noted. “Are we sure he’s really a human?”

“I wondered the same thing but it’s true. He’s a human being.” Phichit said. “Granted, he no longer looks like this but it’s the same person. I tried to read what was written under the picture but the words are now faded. Still, I’m going to see if I can find anything about him now.”

“I have another idea.” Yuuri suggested. “Do you think it’s possible for me to give him something? It’s just a small token and I think he’ll find it useful.”

“I suppose we can give it to him. Maybe one of the seagulls can drop it off to him. As soon as they see him, I’ll make sure they give it.” Phichit promised. “Are you going to tell him it’s from you?”

“I’ve left a note.” Yuuri handed him a small box. “He’ll know it’s from me.”

“All right then. I’ll make sure that this present gets to him. Is there anything else you need?”

“No. I have a feeling he’ll be back soon. He’s interested and so am I. I want to know more about him.” 

Phichit was glad that Yuuri had not asked for more information at this moment. The photo he gave to him was real but what he did not tell him was what was written on the back of it. It was actually a newspaper article with a story from a long time ago. The picture did show a happier Victor but the story was completely different. It talked about something horrible that had happened and Victor’s fate. As long as Yuuri never asked to look behind the picture, they would be fine. If Victor wanted to, he could tell Yuuri about what happened. It would be better if he did. Yuuri would not be happy if he discovered this. It would make him hate himself. 

_If he does tell you, I hope you don’t panic over it._ Phichit thought. _I know for a fact that you won’t like it when you find out the truth. Let’s pray he tells you before you find out on your own._

~ ~ ~

No one knew which seagull had dropped that box on Yuri’s head but he was cursing them all out. He already had enough hatred for those birds due to their squaking and all the poop they left everywhere. Now one of them had the gall to drop things on him.

“I don’t know which one it was but I’ll get them!” He snapped, handing the box to Victor. “It’s for you!”

“For me?” Victor looked at the tiny box that had his name on the outside. It was wet so he figured this seagull picked it out of the ocean. Yet there would be no reason to drop off this particular unless someone meant to do it. Curious, he opened it up and saw the tiny note. It was carved into a small rock but the letters were visible and easy to read. “As a token of my appreciation and to thank you for bringing back my roses, may this come of use to you. The Ocean.” 

It was a tiny necklace that had a shell hanging from it. Yuri took one look at it and scoffed. “This is it? This is what the ocean gave you?”

“It’s the thought that counts.” Victor put the necklace on and touched the tiny seashell. He had come across many shells like this but there was something unique about this one. It wasn’t the white color or the feel of it. This necklace felt like an added weight despite the fact that it was small and light. 

Yuri looked up at the sky and saw that clouds were rolling in. Within seconds, drops of rain started to fall. “We should get inside. You know how bad the storms get.” 

Victor felt a couple of drops fall on his head and he could hear Makkachin whining next to him. Looking up, he saw the rain falling. “Oh!”

“Cold enough for you?”

He didn’t know where that question came from but he answered it anyway. “Um, yes, it’s very cold, Yuri.”

“...I didn’t say anything.” Yuri looked at him and saw that there was a seagull sitting near where Victor was standing. “Come on, old man! Move out of the rain already!”

“You heard him. You don’t want to get a cold, do you? Though to be honest, I don't blame you for ignoring him. He's kind of annoying. Next time, I think I'll drop more than a box on him.”

Victor looked around and then stared at his dog. This didn't sound like anyone he knew. “Who said that? Makkachin?”

“Arf!”

Of course it couldn't be her. Dogs didn't talk.

“No, this power doesn’t work with her. It only works with birds around the ocean and all the creatures in the sea.” The strange voice went on. Victor still looked around where it was coming from while Yuri stared at him like he had lost his mind. It had to be the rain. That was what was making his mind go crazy. “Look over here...no, over here...no, straight ahead. I’m right in front of your face.”

Victor looked straight ahead and found himself staring at a seagull that was perched on the dock. “I don’t see you.”

That was when the seagull spoke. “Hello.”

He gasped and touched the necklace that he had just received. “No, that can’t be! How?!”

“You can thank the ocean for that. He thought you might like a little gift with a special power so surprise! Now you can talk to sea creatures and birds! The dog doesn’t count though, sorry.”

He looked down at Makkachin who was curious about the seagull there. Normally, she loved to chase them around but she was behaving and watchign it closely. The rain was sprinkling on all of them yet Victor didn’t feel anything. He was having a hard time accepting this. “I...I can talk to you? How did I…” 

He looked down at the necklace he had gotten and somehow figured it out. This necklace was giving him this power. As long as he wore it, he could talk to sea creatures. “Can I do anything else while I’m wearing this? Does it give me power to breathe underwater or something else?”

“Well, I don’t think you can breathe underwater wearing it. This necklace only allows you to communicate with sea creatures and birds. You’ll have to ask the ocean himself for other abilities.” 

“Oh.” Victor wasn’t disappointed by this. Being able to talk to animals wasn’t a bad thing. “Did the ocean say anything about me?”

“That’s why I’m here. The ocean requests your presence! He didn’t say when but he wants to see you again. He has a lot to tell you.”

“Like what?” 

Before the seagull had a chance to answer, he heard Mila calling out to him. She was on break from work and found him standing out in the rain. Yuri was unsuccessful at pulling him in so she decided to give it a try. “Victor, who are you talking to? It’s raining and you still haven’t come inside.”

Victor realized that she was right and made his way out of the rain, Yuri was shaking his head, annoyed that it took this long for him to move. “What the hell were you doing, talking to your dog?”

“No, I was talking to that seagull over there!” He pointed to where the seagull had been perched. It had long since flown away, leaving everyone puzzled by this. “Where did he go?”

“You were...talking to a seagull?” Mila asked.

“Yes.”

“A seagull as in the birds flying around here? You were talking to one of them?”

“Yes?” 

Yuri gave him a look before turning away. “That’s it. I’m done for today. I don’t know what’s going on but I’m done.” 

Mila ignored him and saw Victor fiddling with the seashell around his neck. “Oh, where did you get that? Yura told me you got a gift. Of course, that was right before he decided to scream at some more seagulls.”

“It’s from the ocean. I...I have to go back there.” He murmured, looking down at the shell. Maybe he was going crazy and maybe he was falling in love with the ocean. It was strange because there was a nagging feeling in the back of his head. He saw no reason to fear that beautiful creature down there but his mind flashed to dark moments. He didn’t know why but suddenly he had an image of dark water. It was nothing like the ocean water he was used to. This had to be something else.

Unfortunately, that image of dark waters was not leaving him. He couldn’t understand why this was haunting him now. It felt like he was drowning even though he wasn’t close to the ocean. It wasn’t until Mila started talking to him and trying to snap him out of that reverie that the images stopped. 

“Victor! Victor! Are you okay?” She gently touched his shoulder and he blinked. “Is everything all right? You’re sweating!”

“I am?” He touched the top of his forehead and felt the beads of sweat on it. He didn’t know what happened but it was over. “I am fine.”

“Are you sure?” She felt his forehead. “You do feel fine but maybe you should sit inside. Come with me to the shop. My break is over anyway.”

He followed her, still looking at his necklace. Around him, he could hear all the birds chattering but he didn’t pay attention to what they said. He was more concerned about what lay deep in ocean. He waiting for Victor. He wanted to see Victor again. It was high time for Victor to go back and thank him for the gift. 

_Don’t worry. I’ll be there._ He promised, staring out at the ocean. It was calm today with waves rolling in gently. _I’ll see you soon._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come scream at me in comments or tumblr: [fallsintograce](http://fallsintograce.tumblr.com)
> 
> Next chapter will introduce us to more people and a better look inside the ocean. Plus more talking animals!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moving one step closer...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the slowness in updating this fic along with all my others. I've been dealing with some personal stuff and it's been hard to write. I promise to get back to things as soon as possible. This chapter is a little slow but our lovers will get together soon. Truths will be revealed as well.

When Christophe Giacometti came to visit Victor the next morning, he expected his friend to be in good spirits and was happy to find him that way. He expected him to be rambling about something new, playing around with his dog, or teasing Yuri or Georgi over something. If Yakov was around, he expected Victor to be giving his former coach a hard time. 

The only thing he did not expect was to find Victor in the sand, kneeling down and talking to a little crab no bigger than his thumb. Yet there he was on his knees, having a conversation like he was talking to one of his friends. He was laughing at everything the crab was supposedly saying while other people stared at him. No one knew whether to interrupt this conversation or just leave it alone. 

Chris turned the others who were in awe of this. “Are you sure this not a side effect of what happened a long time ago?”

“I thought that but it doesn’t seem like it.” Mila admitted. “They never said anything about him having delusions and talking to animals.”

“He doesn’t think he’s delusional. He’s convinced he talks to sea creatures and birds now.” Yuri rolled his eyes. “He tries talking to his dog and my cat but that doesn’t cause...well, dogs and cats don’t talk. I don’t think why he thinks birds and fish do.” He listened at Victor was laughing at something. “You know, I’m beginning to wonder if we should remind him_”

“No!” Mila shook her head. “We can’t rush it. We’ve tried doing that before, remember? It didn’t work. That day is still a blank to him, no matter how times we tell him that story. Besides, this doesn’t seem that harmful. Strange but not harmful.”

There was silence between them as they thought about that day when no one knew if Victor would be fine. No one had an idea if he would ever wake up or smile or speak to them. They still remembered how Makkachin sniffed around his body, nudged him with her nose, whimpered, and then started howling for the dead. When Makkachin started howling, that was when they had expected the worst. She was already mourning for her master and they truly didn’t think Victor would pull through.

Now here he was, happy and healthy as ever. Makkachin was attempting to scare away the crab and even tried to bite it a few times but Victor scolded her and told her to leave it alone. The crab was apparently their friend. It was telling him some important information about the ocean and he was blushing at the very thought about it.

“He thinks about me?” They heard him ask. “Ahhhh, I can’t wait to see him again!”

“That’s another thing; he thinks he’s in love with the ocean.” Yuri rolled his eyes. “You think after what happened, he wouldn’t be this excited.”

“That’s nothing new; he’s always loved the ocean.” Chris pointed out. “As soon as he got better, the first thing he wanted to do was go to the beach. I don’t think anything could scare him from it. He faced death and he came back.” 

“This is different. His love is stronger than before.” Georgi said. “I think he found someone or something that is changing him.”

“Either that or it’s making him crazy.” Yuri muttered, deciding to go down to the sand and see what Victor was up to. “Oi, Victor! The hell are you doing?!”

“Ah, Yuri!” Victor perked up and motioned him to get closer. Makkachin barked happily and tried to chase the crab away. He had to hold her back. “Makka, no! Sebastian is our friend!”

Yuri blinked. “Hold on. Did you just call that crab ‘Sebastian’?”

“Yes, that’s his name. He told me just now.”

“You’re really serious about this?” He sat down on the sand as everyone else joined them. “Victor, you really think you can talk to animals now?”

“Not all of them. I still don’t know what Makka is saying.” Victor scratched Makkachin behind her ears and she let out some happy, low growls. “Ah, I know you love that! He was a good crab, wasn’t he? Even though you tried to eat him, he was our friend!”

Yuri didn’t know what he wanted to do more; shove Victor’s head into the sand or shove his own into it. He didn’t know how much more of this stupidity he was going to take. Out of anger, he kicked some sand in Victor’s direction. “I don’t believe you! First, you think you’re in love with the damn ocean, now you think you talk to crabs! You’re not in some stupid cartoon movie! This is real life, asshole!”

“Yura, calm down!” Mila insisted. “There’s nothing wrong with talking to animals. You talk to your cat all the time!”

“That’s right. I’ve seen how you act around your cat as well as my own.” Chris added. “If Victor wants to talk to crabs, he can talk to them.”

“That’s different! I don’t expect my cat to reply!” Yuri snapped. He was trying to stay calm for Victor’s sake but this was too much. “Look, if you love the ocean so much, go down there and tell him! What the hell are you doing with us then?”

“Yuri…” Mila gave him a look. The more he did this, the more likely Victor’s memory was going to come back. If it did, then they would have to explain everything and he would be in a far worse state than he was now. “Let him do what he wants. It’s not hurting anyone!” 

“Actually, that is a good idea.” Georgi murmured. “Maybe in order to get close to the one you love, you must visit them.”

“You think so?” Victor asked. “I’ve been wanting to do that but I’m scared suddenly. I don’t know why. I’m scared of what can happen to me.” 

He looked at the waves rolling in and out. The ocean was unusually calm today and it was the perfect weather to be out there. However, he had seen this kind of behavior with it before. The way it rolled in and out ultimately led to some terrible storms. The skies would darken, rain would start to fall, and the winds would pick up. He didn’t want to die out there while the weather was beating down on the land. 

“So what do you want to do?”

Victor looked down at the crab and it seemed like he was listening to it. “Are you sure? Is he really waiting for me?”

“Oh great, here we go again.” Yuri grumbled. Makkachin started barking at the crab who decided to walk away. “Yeah, get lost, you little asshole! You’re making Victor crazier than he already is!”

“No, wait!” Victor pleaded, trying to go after it. “Sebastian, don’t listen to him! Can you at least tell me where Yuuri will be?”

“Why the hell are going to care where I’m going to be?”

“Not you, Yuuri the ocean.” Victor listened for a second before nodding. “Okay, I’ll be there. Tell Yuuri to wait for me and be there in an hour.”

“Why are we talking about me?!” Yuri patience was starting to wear thin. 

“It’s not you, Yura! Apparently, the ocean has your name.” Mila looked over at Victor. “I don’t understand any of this either but if this makes you happy, Victor, you should do it. See this ocean named Yuuri. Do it for yourself if no one else.”

“She is right.” Georgi added. “Matters of the heart should never be left alone. Go see this Yuuri and tell him how you feel.”

Chris listened to all this and needed to have some time alone with his friend. “Do you mind if Victor and I have some time alone? I need to tell him something.”

“Yeah, you do that.” Yuri gave up. “I don’t know what you can say that’ll change his mind. He’s convinced he’s in love with the ocean and that’s a real thing. Good luck because you’re going to need it.”

Mila got up. “I’ll be in the shop if you need me.”

“Remember what I said, Victor.” Georgi finished off. “Don’t let this linger!”

Once all three of them were gone, Chris knew he could get down to the important things. Victor probably wouldn’t tell them what happened but he would tell him. He would talk about what was going on and how he felt. After that incident, Victor suddenly became more aware of his surroundings and feelings. He smiled more and sometimes said things that were savage yet honest. Still, something was missing from his life and no one could pinpoint what it was. He was changing and no one could tell if it was for the better.

“Okay, you have to tell me.” Chris began as Victor watched the crab crawling away. “When did you get the ability to talk to animals?”

Victor touched the shell around his neck and thought about his new found powers. “It came from the ocean.”

Chris had a hard time buying this but kept pressing on. “So I heard you’re in love with someone. When am I going to meet him?”

“I have to see him again first. He wants to see me.” Victor sighed. “I wish I could tell you more but I can’t explain it. He’s beautiful.” He looked over at the rolling waves. “I need to go soon. He’s waiting for me.” 

This was not giving Chris enough information but it did tell him one thing; this had nothing to do with what happened in the past. Victor was not delusional. He wasn’t hurt or seeing things that didn’t exist. He wasn’t lying about anything and he was truly in love. He had seen something that was beautiful and he couldn’t put it into words. Maybe the ocean had given him this ability to talk to creatures and it was healing him. That was kind of ironic given how much it had hurt him in the past.

 _If I were you, I would move away as far as I could from the water. Instead, you seem to be drawn closer to it. I don’t understand._ Chris looked over at his friend who was now playing with Makkachin. No one could forget how the dog reacted or the way she howled. Makkachin had never howled like that for anything and they knew what it was; she was howling for the dead. Even she seemed resigned to the fact that maybe she would never see him again. 

Still, Victor came back when no one thought he would and now he was obsessed with that ocean. He was in love with it and he had forgotten about his fears if he had any. Yet there was still a horrible feeling that lingered around. Something was coming around the corner and that was going to tear everything apart. 

Nothing good was going to come out of this. 

~ ~ ~

Yuuri looked at himself, wondering if he was making a big mistake. He could see Vicchan nearby as kept an eye out for any humans or possible danger. He knew that Victor would come back. He had given him that present to make sure he came back. Deep down, he could feel the nerves coming over him and the water around him began to move rapidly. He tried to calm down because he knew he couldn’t make the waters too rough for people. This had been happening too much. The reason people weren’t coming into the water was because of him. It was all his nerves. 

“I have to stay calm.” He told himself. “I want him to come over here. I can’t keep him away from the water.”

Vicchan swam around him as if to give him some comfort. He needed it because he didn’t know what to tell Victor next. How was he going to approach him now? The one plan that he had was approaching him from behind. He was struggling to approach him face to face so maybe another way was better. He would be gentle with him and try to speak softly so Victor would not be scared. More importantly, he would not try to make rough waves with the waters. 

Prior to this, he had gotten a visit from his sister and he knew very well that she was around. Mari brought in all the winds and thick fog whenever she came in and the town would be covered in it. Visibility was limited and the fog wouldn’t lift until Mari went away. Last night, she lingered around and the dense fog covered the entire town that apparently no one was allowed to go out. It would be too hard for them to see anything.

Mari listened to her brother talking about the human and she wasn’t the least bit surprised by it. In fact, she was amused. She blew her fog around the town and laughed after Yuuri told her what he had experienced.

“A human, huh? I wish I could say I was surprised. You have humans always swimming around in the water.” She told him. “What makes this one different?”

“I don’t know.” Yuuri admitted. “Something is special about him. He didn’t hurt my roses. He was kind and I think we could become good friends. Maybe more.”

“More?” Now Mari’s interests were piqued. “Do you really think an ocean god can fall in love with a human?”

“I didn’t say I was in love!”

“Really? You sound like it. I can hear it in your voice, I see it in the way the water is moving. Whenever you think of him, you calm down. The waves just roll in and out. I’m not sure what you’re feeling but I think you have something for this human. You wouldn’t say you wanted to be more than friends if you didn’t.”

“I...um…” Yuuri realized she was right. “I just wish he was a god too. Even being a merman wouldn’t have hurt.”

“Unfortunately, he’s neither. He’s a human being and a human can’t be with the ocean. I’m not sure how you’re going to do this. Being aware of your existence is bad enough. You can’t spend eternity together, not like this.”

“So I should leave him alone?”

“I can’t tell you what to do, Yuuri. You have to decide what you want. I’ll support what you want. I just hope you know what you’re doing and if this is what you feel is right.”

That wasn’t the advice he was hoping for but Mari was right about all of this. A human could not live with a god like this. Victor needed the air above to breathe and live. He wasn’t born with gills or fins that he could spend a lifetime in the ocean. It was also dangerous that he knew of Yuuri’s existence. So far, he probably hadn’t said anything to other people but how long could he keep this secret? Victor could leave him alone but other scientists and humans would not. They would want to know everything about Yuuri and what he could do. What was worse was if they found out Yuuri was behind all the storms. What could they do then?

“I’m worrying too much.” He told himself, looking over his shoulder. No one was there but Vicchan, all wide-eyed and swimming about. “I just have to wait till Phichit comes over and tells me where Victor is. I have no reason to be scared of him. Even if other humans find out, Victor will help me and keep my secret. He’s not going to use me for anything.”

Vicchan nuzzled next to him as Phichit called out his name. “Yuuri! I found him!”

“Good!” Yuuri looked over at his friend swimming down with excitement. “Where is he?”

“I saw him swimming around that purple coral and I don’t think he’s leaving it anytime soon. If you want to see him, now’s your chance. Don’t scare him though. Approach him carefully and speak softly. It looks like he is working. He might be taking notes like some of those humans do. I wouldn’t worry because he’s not hurting the coral. He’s observing it.” Phichit explained. 

“Okay, I can do that.” Yuuri nodded. “Is there anything else I need to know?”

“Not that I can think of. He’s a very dedicated worker from what I saw. Didn’t bother the fish at all. In fact, I saw him wave to a school of fish swimming by.” Phichit laughed to himself. “I don’t think he’s harmful at all. If you don’t scare him, he will be fine.”

“I’ll approach him carefully then. I won’t try to bother his work. I will just show up and see how he’s doing.” Yuuri decided. “Thanks, Phichit. Let me go and see him then.”

“Good luck! Be careful!”

He didn’t understand the last warning but took note of it anyway. The purple coral was not far from where he was resting and he knew it was an area that a lot of marine biologists and other humans loved to visit. Fish were always swimming around it because it was a good place to get nutrients and it a hiding spot from predators. For Yuuri, the purple coral was a place where he could rest and think about a lot of things. He went there often to think about Victor and what their future was going to be like. He had a little fear inside because he didn’t think Victor would feel the same way. That was why he was going to ease into this. Phichit told him not to scare him so he wouldn’t.

Vicchan swam by his side and tried to hide in case anything large and frightening was also swimming around. Sharks were also prone to show up around the purple coral though they didn’t stay for long. To be on the safe side, Yuuri kept his pet at his side. The last thing he wanted was for Vicchan to end up as some sea creature’s meal. 

At first, Yuuri didn’t see Victor because of all the fish that had surrounded him. He was amused by the sight because Victor seemed happy around them. He could hear his thoughts, telling those fish that he was trying to work and waiting for someone special. The fish were trying to behave but they were also asking him questions. They wanted to know everything about him. Even from a distance, Yuuri could hear the fish gabbing away with him. 

_How old are you?_

_You’re very pretty for a human. How did you get such blue eyes?_

_Have you ever thought of being a merman or a fish?_

_You look scared. There's nothing to be afraid of. Sharks don't come here and they'd never eat you._

Yuuri sighed and tried to break them up. “All right, everyone! Leave him alone! He’s trying to work!”

The fish quickly started to swim away, apologizing as they left. That was when Yuuri saw him wearing the present he had given him earlier. That shell was hanging from his neck and it was clear he understood what those fish were saying because he seemed a little exhausted by them. Once they were gone, Victor seemed to lighten up and relax when he saw Yuuri. He was afraid to move closer but not afraid of what he was thinking.

_Wow! You’re beautiful!_

“Thank you. You’re beautiful too.” Yuuri replied, wondering what to say next. Then he saw the shell and realized what to ask. “Did you like your present?”

_Yes. I didn’t realize animals could talk so much. I wish I could talk to my dog though._

“I’m sorry. It only works when you’re close to the sea. You’re here now though.” He looked around and saw that no one was nearby. Things were going to go well and he could take Victor everywhere he wanted. He motioned him to get closer because now their little date was going to begin.

“Come with me. I have something to show you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to follow me or scream at me. I'm also on tumblr: [fallsintograce](http://fallsintograce.tumblr.com)


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Secrets are starting to unravel...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone. I apologize for my lateness on this fic but I finally got some energy and inspiration to get it going. It's not the longest chapter I've written but I needed to get this part going.

Phichit was growing more and more worried as found more things from the human world. The more he dug up from there, the more he found out about Yuuri’s human. He heard plenty of news that confirmed his worst fears. He had been doing his research for the past few days and everything was leading to one solution. He was hoping that maybe there was some information he was missing. He wanted to believe that someone on land was spreading a rumor. However, he got nothing to help ease the worries. This wasn’t the first time Victor Nikiforov had been the ocean but he had plenty of brushes with death. The problem was that he seemed to be unaware of these brushes with death and the fact that they all took place close to the ocean. For some reason, he was drawn to the beach. It might have been big and there were places that humans had yet to discover in it but Victor wanted to see more of it.

 _I don’t understand. You have come close to death before but you keep coming back here? Why?_ Phichit kept looking through the strange articles he managed to find from land. Most of them were soaked and hard to read but it was easy to tell what happened from pictures. He had to keep these things hidden from Yuuri. The truth was going to hurt if it came out.

“I don’t think Yuuri remembers doing any of this.” He told Mari when she came around. Yuuri’s sister blew in with all her wind and fog on certain nights. Since Yuuri wasn’t here at this moment, Phichit could tell her what he found. “Funny enough, neither does the human. If either knew what happened, they would be far from each other.”

“Well, I just hope Yuuri never finds out.” Mari said. “I’ve been hearing a lot of things from the human world. Most of them are pretty upset with how dark and dirty the ocean water has become. Others are scared of how violent the waves have become as of late. They don’t want to go in. Did something happen with Yuuri and that’s why he’s causing all this? Besides meeting the human, has he been upset about anything?”

“Not that I’m aware of. In fact, he seems more calm than usual. You would think the waters would be calm too.” Phichit was now worried about this. “What do you think is causing this if it’s not Yuuri?”

“I’m not sure. That’s why I came here to see how things were. You’re right about Yuuri seeming a lot more calm than before. Maybe this human has something to do with it. I’m going to keep my eye on him on the land if I can. I don’t think he’s harmful but there is something about him that’s very familiar.” 

“Is he someone that comes around the ocean often?”

“He could be. I’ve seen similar faces all around. I just hope Yuuri is not getting himself into trouble. I hope he knows that getting close to a human could be a disadvantage. Humans aren’t supposed to know who he is or what he does.”

“I know but I think Yuuri can handle this. He might be nervous but I think, if he gets to know the human well enough, things will be fine.” Phichit promised. “He’s a lot stronger than he appears.”

“That’s true and let’s hope he doesn’t get too nervous. We know what can happen.”

Mari’s concerns were valid because on a really bad day, Yuuri’s nerves would affect everything around him; air, land, and water. So far, he was fine and people were safe everywhere. Maybe this human would be of help to him. He could help Yuuri calm down and not cause so many disasters because of his emotions. The only thing that he hoped was Yuuri would not find out the truth.

Minami also had those concerns when Phichit showed him the piece of paper from land. Even though he couldn’t read what was written, he knew it was bad news. “Is there anything I need to do? I don’t want Yuuri to get hurt.”

“Well, I don’t think he will get hurt. He’s too powerful. As long as he doesn’t learn about what he did in the past, we’ll be fine. He’ll be fine. Let’s hope that things stay the same. As for Yuuri, keep your eye on him and comfort him if it seems like he’s anxious. Keep him calm if you can. We don’t need disasters on the land.” 

“No disasters on land. Got it.” Minami nodded. “He looks fine right now but I will be on him.”

“Good. I’ll bring news from the land if I hear anything.”

Phichit was relieved that Yuuri’s emotions were calm as of late. He had seen humans coming down to the beach more and some of them were even getting in the water. The waters were now clear and blue so they could see down to the bottom. It was a bit of a relief that things were fine. However, he knew that wasn’t always going to stay that way. The moment someone did something to the water or any of the creatures living in it, Yuuri would panic. That panic would easily turn into rage and he would bring the worst storms he could on land. He had power that could split the world in half if he wanted to. However, if Yuuri found out the truth of what he had done years ago, something worse could happen. 

“Please don’t find out.” Phichit whispered, thinking about that newspaper article. “And if you do learn the truth, don’t destroy the world.” 

~ ~ ~

It was fun to see the fish swimming around and the bright beautiful coral that filled the ocean floor. This was Yuuri’s home. It was the place he was born in and the place that he looked after. He had seen all the changes that it had gone through over the years and he had seen the destruction that had been caused. He knew what humans were capable of doing and he knew the harm that could come to such a beautiful place. The oceans were important and some people didn’t realize that.

“I try my best to keep everything alive and well.” He explained. “I wish I could say that people are getting better at how they treat the waters but that’s not always the case. I have seen humans touching coral, trying to take things from the ocean floor, standing on things they shouldn’t stand on, pouring things that don’t belong in the water, and so much more. It’s very sad when you think about it.” 

Victor knew exactly what he meant as he watched a colorful group of fish swim past them. It was disheartening to hear that the oceans weren’t getting better. He knew a lot of people could be very careless so he did his best not to hurt anything. _I’m sorry. I wish I could stop them._

“It’s okay. You’re only human. You can only do so much.” Yuuri murmured, looking at some of the coral. They were healthy but who knew how long they would stay this way. “I try to do my best as well. You think that as a God of the ocean, I could fix everything. You think I could keep everything alive and healthy but I can’t. Everyone says I have a lot of power but I don’t know about that. I’m afraid of having that much power.”

_Why are you afraid of having power?_

“It’s hard to explain but I don’t think I’m capable of ruling oceans. I don’t have much confidence, not like my sister or anyone else in my family. They know how to keep things in control and they’re never afraid of what they do. Me, I worry I might go too far.” Yuuri found one of the ocean roses and carefully picked it up. It was so blue and in full bloom. “The one good thing I have been able to do is keep the ocean roses alive. Most humans don’t know about them and I hope they never find out. The roses belong down here where they can thrive.”

 _Then I promise not to tell anyone what I’ve seen._ Victor assured him. _I’m sorry if you thought I was hurting the flowers. I wasn’t trying to. I just wanted to see where they came from._

“It’s okay. I know you mean no harm to the ocean. You are one of the human beings out there that wouldn’t do anything to it. You want to help it, don’t you?” Yuuri asked. “I can see it in your eyes. You are curious about it and you want to keep it around for as long as you can. You want to be different from the other humans.”

_Do you think I am different?_

“Yes.” Yuuri nodded. “I think you’re beautiful.” 

The words came out so quickly and he realized that those may not have been the right words. He tried to cover it up the best that he could. “I mean, your thoughts and idea are beautiful. The way you treat the ocean is beautiful! The way you think about everything down here and how you want to save it is beautiful! That is what I meant! I wasn’t trying to imply_”

 _Yuuri?_ Victor cut him off before he could keep rambling. He could see all the schools of fish trying to swim away from them. It was as though they had sensed something. _It’s all right. I know what you meant so don’t worry. In fact, I have wanted to tell you something and I never knew how. I was afraid how you would feel but now I think I should let it out. I think you’re beautiful as well._

“You do? Or are you just saying that to make me feel better?”

 _I mean it. I wanted to…_ He trailed off for a second and lost his train of thought. Things were getting foggy in his mind and he wondered if he needed to go up for air. It was a shame because he was having a lot of fun. _Yuuri, I might need some air._

“Of course! I forgot that you’re not a merman because you remind so much of one.” He admitted, wanting to reach and touch Victor for a second. He wanted to feel those silver locks through his fingers and feel how warm Victor’s skin was. “If you’re not feeling well, then please go up to the surface.”

 _Okay. I was going to say something but I forgot._ Victor rubbed his forehead. _It was something important and now I don’t know what._

Yuuri saw it at that moment. It was small but visible when he looked up close. Victor had a scar that was starting at the tip of his forehead and moving upwards. That scar definitely wasn’t tiny and it had to have come from a big accident. His hair could hide most of that injury but if someone pushed it aside, they could see it. 

“What happened to you?” Yuuri couldn’t help asking. 

_What do you mean?_

“Your head...what happened there? I can see that mark.” He pointed to the scar. “Did you fall or hit your head on something?” 

Victor reached up and felt the area that Yuuri was pointing at. Sure enough, he was right about the mark. It was deep and he could feel it under his hair. _I don’t know. I never saw it before._

“You never saw it? I know it’s small but I thought you would have known where you got it from.” That didn’t sound good. “Maybe you should ask someone that you know well. They might remember better than you do.”

_You’re right. Let me ask someone about this._

He felt that scar again and tried to figure out where this came from. He had accidents and injuries in the past. He had fallen many times and he had hurt his head. However, he knew none of those injuries were too bad. He always got better and things always went back to normal. He never stayed down for very long. However, there was this scar and he didn’t know where it came from. 

It was high time to find out.

~ ~ ~

Yuri had been sitting outside of Mila’s shop and feeling bored. Today was a very quiet day and no one was around to entertain him. These were the days that he didn’t like spending time on the beach. All he could do was play with his phone and hope that something exciting came along. 

“Ugh, this sucks!” He griped, looking out at the empty shore. The sun might have been out but the air was cool. Most people were done with walking around and swimming so there was very little activity. “There’s nothing to do today!”

“Well, if you’re that bored, you can help in the shop. I have some things I need to put away.” Mila suggested, trying to rearrange some of the flowers outside. “There’s always work over here.”

“Meh, I’m not that bored!” Yuri rolled his eyes. “I just wish something would happen out in the ocean. Last time, you could at least hear about sharks in the water and stuff like that. What happened now?”

“I don’t know. I guess all the storms changed everything.” Mila murmured. She knew that Yuri wasn’t the only one feeling bored these days. “In a way, it’s a good thing. It’s good that things are quiet now. No one comes out in bad weather.”

“I guess. It’s changed a lot since that one time.” Yuri pointed out. “We can’t keep this a secret forever. Victor’s going to find out what really happened to him and he’s going to want to know everything.”

“What happened to me?” Victor suddenly asked, coming up from behind. Both Mila and Yuri turned around, unprepared for how they would break the truth. He didn’t look upset but confused. Physically, he seemed fine especially after coming out the ocean and looking cleaned up. Inside, he was lost. He wanted answers and it looked his friends knew something that he didn’t. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, Victor!” Mila tried to collect herself. “I didn’t think you would come here today! I thought you were doing work in the ocean.”

“I was but then I stopped feeling well. I think it has to do with this.” He showed them the tiny scar. “I don’t remember when I got that.”

Yuri turned to Mila who was also sweating over this. They didn’t want to talk about it now. They were not ready to talk about it today. They needed more people, namely Yakov, to give Victor all the details. “I was hoping you weren’t going to ask about it.” 

“Ask about what? What do you know that I don’t?” Victor asked. “I’m not leaving until one of you tells me. What happened to me?”

Mila bit her bottom lip. “I don’t think you’re ready to hear about it, Victor. It's painful. It’s a long story and I don’t know everything about it.”

“Well, then tell me what you do know. What’s the story about?”

She closed her eyes. “It’s about the night you almost died.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> Come scream at me on my tumblr: [fallsintograce](http://fallsintograce.tumblr.com) . What happened? We'll find out soon!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of backstory...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for a short chapter and no Yuuri in this one I'm afraid. He will return in the next one, don't worry, as will many others! I'm getting this thing rolling now. I'm sorry if it seems slow. I've been having some personal issues but I'm trying to put them aside for now. I'd like to get something finished before this year is over! 
> 
> Also, it's been one year since this fic was started so yay!

Night time had fallen in town and just about everyone was settled in for the night. There was supposed to be another thunderstorm so no one would be out and about. Yakov had settled down for a peaceful evening and was hoping no one would bother to call. He had put his phone in another room for that reason. The only way he would pick it up was if there was an emergency. If his former students were smart, they wouldn’t bother to go out tonight. Most stores were closing up and no one would be running around. Not with the way the thunder was booming and the winds were blowing. 

Of course, as soon as he sat down, there was a lot of knocking at his door. He ignored it at first and thought it was the trees rapping against it. They could be loud enough on a windy night like this. Then he heard someone calling his name out and he knew who it was. Only one person out there would be foolish enough to run out in the rain. Sighing, he got up and answered the door. He didn't need to look through the peephole to be sure. He was certain of this well before he unlocked the door and opened it.

“Vitya, what are you doing?!” He demanded when he saw his former student, dripping wet and shivering. The rain was coming down hard so he ushered Victor inside. “What is so important that you needed to come at this hour?!”

“I need to talk to you.” Victor began as he sneezed. “I’m sorry to come here so late.”

“You couldn’t call me or wait till tomorrow?” Yakov got a towel and handed it to him. “Why am I not surprised? You could never wait to do anything. Dry yourself off and I’ll try to find you some clothes to wear.”

“Is it true?” Victor didn’t seem to hear a thing that was said. “Did it really happen?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Mila said you would know about it. She said you knew exactly what happened to me.” Victor went on. “Tell me the truth.”

“The truth about what, Vitya? You’re not making sense right now.” 

“Did I almost die?” Victor finally asked, wrapping himself in the towel. “She said I almost died years ago in the ocean. Is that true? What happened?”

Yakov paused for a second when he saw Victor’s face. He knew that look all too well. This was when Victor was getting serious and scared. He only saw that look a few other times before. Victor wasn’t scared of the ocean but that was because he couldn’t remember what happened to him. He was only eighteen at the time and all those memories had been buried away. At least, they should have stayed buried.

“So you’re starting to remember.” Yakov realized, leading Victor inside. “Stay right there. I’ll get you something to wear and then I’ll tell you.”

Victor looked around Yakov’s living room while his former teacher went to get him some clothes. For someone who acted like he didn’t care about others, Yakov did have a lot of pictures of his students. He saw pictures of himself on the walls from he was younger. He remembered having all that long hair, the trips to the shore, and playing around with animals in the water. He was young when he got into marine biology and he remembered a lot of those moments in the pictures. He remembered swimming with manta rays and sea turtles. He remembered counting all the fish and going around different areas of the ocean. After that, everything was a blur. He was missing years in his life. 

_What happened to me?_ He wondered as he looked at some of the photos. He was smiling for the camera and excited with everything he saw. What changed between that moment and now? He still loved the ocean and he was curious to learn more about Yuuri. Until now, he didn’t know about an ocean spirit. He didn’t think they existed but now he knew better. If Yuuri existed, there had to be a lot more he didn’t know. 

There was nothing that he feared in the water. If he ever got hurt there, it was usually due to his own clumsiness. The worst was probably dealing with sea urchins and even that wasn’t too bad. He recovered quickly from that. This injur that almost killed him, whatever it was, couldn’t have been caused by sea urchins. 

Then a dark thought filled his mind. No one had told him how he had almost died so what if was one of those things he didn’t know? He had seen plenty of horror movies that had taken place in the ocean. He knew that was all done for entertainment but what if there was a horrible thing down there? What if that was what had almost killed him?

“I remember it like it was yesterday.” Yakov said as he came in with more towels and robe. “You’ve never been good at listening to me but I tried to keep you away from the water. On that day, it was just too rough and dangerous to swim in.”

“But I went out anyway.” Victor realized. “Why would I go out?”

“I never understood that. I asked you the same question that day and you said the sea was calling to you. You could hear it and you wanted to know why it was drawing you in. I thought you were being foolish and trying to keep you from going in the water.”

“Did you hear it as well?” 

“No, no one but you heard that. You thought you had to go out even though I begged you not to. It was a night just like this…”

~ ~ ~

_Ten years ago…._

“Vitya, be reasonable.” Yakov sighed, trying to pull his former student back towards the town. The wind was already picking up and there was news about a hurricane heading in their direction. “It’s too cold and dangerous. You can see the waves getting bigger. This is not the time to go to the beach, let alone get in the water.”

“I have to!” Victor insisted, looking at the trees that were waving with the wind. “The ocean is calling to me!”

“You cannot be serious. I can see from here that it’s too dangerous for anyone to go down there!” Yakov pointed out the window where the big waves were crashing on the sand. The entire beach had been empty due to the hurricane coming in. A normal person would have been trying to stay indoors and finding a safe place to wait out the storm. A smart person wouldn’t even dream of taking a step out those doors unless they were crazy.

Now Victor was very smart but he was also a little crazy. He wasn’t scared by the winds or the crashing waves. If anything, they excited him and he wanted to see just how everything underwater reacted to the weather above. Of course, Yakov was doing his best to keep him as far from this as possible. He would rather have a safe student than a curious yet reckless one. 

“I know you don’t like listening to me but I’m saying this for your own good! If something were to happen to you out there, I don’t know what I’d do!” Yakov sounded angry but he truly was concerned. He did care a lot about Victor despite how much he scolded him. He didn’t want to see him get hurt. “Please don’t do this. You can go another day.”

In the corner, Yuri was smirking at him. “You’re going to eaten by a tiger shark!”

“That’s enough!” Yakov turned to Victor. “Promise me you won’t go out. Stay here. Wait until the storm goes away. After that, you can do whatever you want. Just do not go out tonight.”

Victor stared out the window and he could understand Yakov’s concern. He knew that it was dangerous out there and it would be wise to stay inside. Yet he could hear someone crying out there. Someone wanted him to find them and he couldn’t wait to do it. They were calling him now and he had to get out there without anyone seeing him. 

“I promise.” He said. “I won’t go out tonight.”

It hurt to lie but at least Yakov would get off his back. He could put the old man’s mind at ease for the time being. Deep down, he was making his plan to go out there once the winds stopped howling. He knew that everyone was saying the weather would only get worse but he couldn’t wait. The sea was crying out and he needed to know what was making that noise.

Once Yakov was satisfied and left him, Yuri leaned over and smirked at him. “You’re going to do it, aren’t you?”

“I’m not! I promised Yakov I wouldn’t!”

“Right.” Yuri rolled his eyes. “You’re really bad at lying. Still, I hope you don’t do something stupid by going out there. If you do, you’re going to end up dead.”

“I’ll be fine. I’ve done this before.” Victor promised. “Just don’t tell anyone where I went.”

“Whatever. You can’t say I didn’t warn you. Don’t get yourself killed.”

The winds howled louder outside and they would have been enough to turn people away. Victor was only getting more excited. He wouldn’t be gone for long. He’d see what it was and come straight back home. Yakov would never have to know. 

No one needed to know.

~ ~ ~

“The next morning, I get the call that you have been sent to the hospital. Yuri was horrified when he heard about this. He didn’t think you would go out and get hurt. It may not have been a tiger shark but it almost cost you your life.” Yakov sighed. “I knew you wouldn’t listen to me but just once, I hoped you would be wise and stay behind. I’m not sure exactly what happened. I just know that people found you and you were barely breathing. They don’t know when you went out or how you ended up on shore. You’re very lucky you are alive.”

Victor tried to take in everything that he heard. There had to be a lot more to this story that him being reckless and going out during a storm. He could believe that he was fascinated by it and wanted to see more. However,a big chunk of the story was missing and he couldn’t remember exactly what happened in between.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me sooner?” He wanted to know.

“We kept hoping your memories would come back on their own. We were told to let you remember them bit by bit. Then time started to pass but you seemed to forget about what happened. I thought for sure that you would never go back to the ocean. Yet you seem more drawn to it than ever. You became a hardworker and you were very dedicated to your work. The only thing I hoped for was that you wouldn’t do something like this again.” 

Victor felt the scar that was in the back of his head. Clearly, he had hit his head on something and that was why he couldn’t remember very much of that night. “I’m not scared of it and I do think there’s more to see in the ocean. I want to explore it.”

“That is fine but you have to be careful. I feel like you might be heading into something you don’t know much about.” Yakov said. “Promise me you will be careful and you won’t go out when it’s dangerous. The weather is getting terrible and I know you have work to do but don’t go.”

“Yakov…”

“I mean it, Vitya. I don’t know if you saw the weather report but another storm is coming here. It’s supposed to be worse than the one from ten years ago. I don’t care if the ocean is calling you. Don’t go out.”

“I…” Victor wanted to argue against this. Yakov had no idea about Yuuri down in those waters and what he was like. Yuuri would never try to hurt anyone. He was gentle. He seemed to like Victor and he calmed down around him. He was a beautiful being and he had no ill will towards people.

 _Then again, I almost died in the ocean and Yuuri is the ocean spirit. He wouldn’t hurt me though. He couldn’t, could he?_

“I won’t ask you again, Vitya. Just promise me you won’t go out in bad weather. Promise that you won’t be reckless.”

“I promise.” Victor said, unsure if he could keep this promise. “I promise I will be careful.”

Yakov seemed satisfied even though he had doubts. Now that Victor knew a little bit about his past, he was going to do what he could remember the rest. The doctors had said that they needed to take it slowly. They couldn’t force him to remember anything. He had to figure out on his own and no doubt he wanted to do that. He just had to do it in a safer way. Going into the ocean at this time was not it. 

“I hope you are being serious about that now. You know I can’t afford to lose you. Not again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr: @fallsintograce or on Pillowfort (which I use less but it's there): @fallsintonothing
> 
> More exciting stuff coming on the way!

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on tumblr: [fallsintograce](http://fallsintograce.tumblr.com)
> 
> I will try to keep a steady updating schedule with all these wips but we'll see what happens! Forgive any errors, I'll fix them when I get around to them tomorrow!


End file.
